� WHAT TO EXPECT : After losing two home games this season, the Huskies can hardly afford to drop another one, particularly with No. 2 North Carolina and No. 8 Syracuse still coming to town. But for a UConn team struggling to play a complete game, Villanova isn't the best opponent. The Wildcats, who cracked the national polls this week after winning their last three games, are coming off a 33-point victory at Rutgers last Saturday. Even so, don't count on Villanova coach Jay Wright to look past the defending national champions tonight. "They're going to be like cornered animals with their backs to the wall," predicted Wright, whose team is back in the polls for the first time in eight years. UConn can win this game, but only if the Huskies find a way to derail Villanova's big three: 6-foot-2 guard Allan Ray, 6-3 guard Randy Foye and 6-7 forward Curtis Sumpter, a former UConn recruit. Ray, the Big East's fifth-leading scorer, leads Villanova with 17.8 ppg, followed by Sumpter with 16.4 ppg and Foye with 14.5 ppg. With both of these teams 4-3 in Big East play, this game has suddenly become critical. After all, first-place Boston College is undefeated at 8-0, while second-place Syracuse is 7-1. For UConn, a team that began the season with Big East championship aspirations, the thought of slipping to .500 in the league is hardly conceivable. Look for the Huskies to win one with pride tonight.